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Okay, this is not new. My dad was raving about no knead bread about a year ago and the recipe was made popular by Mark Bittman in the NY Times about three years ago. I admit it. I’m slow. So I’m NOT proclaiming to have discovered the next best thing. I’m just here to tell you that it’s even easier than not kneading.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
• ¼ t active dry or instant yeast
• 1¼ t salt
• 1 5/8 C water

Directions

The magic of this bread, of course, is that you don’t have to knead it. By letting it sit for 14-20 hours, the yeast works its magic in turning your flour into just the right gluteny consistency.

Start by mixing all the dry ingredients together. Wonderful thing #2 – you can use either active dry or instant yeast pretty easily. Usually, you have to activate active dry in a little warm water and sugar. No worries. You let it sit so long that it’s able to work without the foreplay. You may want to add just a pinch more though, just in case you’re worried.

Next add your water and mix thoroughly. I’ve been making cheese lately, so I have a lot of whey. I’ve substituted whey for water and found that it makes the bread naturally sweet. After mixing cover, set on top of the refrigerator, and wait. Or, wonderful thing #3, go about your life and don’t worry about the dough. You have to let it sit at least 14 hours, but you can always let it sit MORE. Don’t feel like you’re tied the finicky rising of your dough. This sucker is very forgiving and will be just fine if you forget about it.

If you think you’re going to go well over 20 hours, and that kinda worries you, you can throw it in the fridge at some point. I will start a loaf at night before I go to bed and then put it in the fridge after I get home from work the next day in order to use the next day for dinner. This bread does make you think a few days in advance, but that’s about the only work you actually have to do.

At least 2 hours before putting it in the oven, pour the dough onto a well floured surface. By this time, the dough will softened and you’ll see bubbles on the surface. Fold it over on itself a few times. Cover and let sit for 15 minutes. Then quickly form into a ball and place seam down on a WELL floured kitchen towel (not terry cloth) and cover with another towel. Don’t skimp on the flour or you will not get the dough off your towel. Ever.

And here’s wonderful thing #4 about this dough – the minimum time to let the dough rise here is 2 hours, but it can wait a lot longer. I’ll do the above steps after taking the dough out of its night in my fridge. Then it will rise while I’m at work all day. I swear, this bread is not like a child – it does not need to be supervised.

When the dough has doubled, or when you’re good and ready, heat the oven to 450 with a dutch oven inside. You’re going to need a 6 quart dutch oven. OR, you guessed it, wonderful thing #5 – you can half, quarter, 1/3, double this recipe to make the size that works for you, or your smaller dutch oven (mine is only 2 quarts). Unlike other baking projects, the proportions for this are pretty forgiving.

After preheating the oven and dutch oven for about a half hour plop the dough in the hot dutch oven. Slosh it around a bit, cover it, and put it in the oven. If you do the regular size, check the loaf at 30 minutes. It should be starting to get golden. Leave the lid off for another 15 – 30 minutes until the crust has a dark golden hue with a split in the top. If you do a smaller size, check earlier. I ended up doing about 20 minutes with the top on and another 20 minutes with the top off for my 1/3 recipe. And I think I may have had the oven at 425 instead of 450. Have I mentioned how forgiving this recipe is?

Take it out of the oven and cool on a rack. Or wait until you don’t burn your fingers/mouth on the bread and dig in. I really like making a third of a recipe because it’s enough for two, with little to no leftovers. This bread is amazing when it comes out of the oven. It’s still good the next day, but when it’s so easy to have the fresh from the oven experience, why not make it fresh?

These muffins are full of veggies and great with soup. The cornmeal adds a nice yellow color and a subtle crunch. Another great recipe adapted from The City Gardener’s Cookbook!

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup oil
• 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup seeded and finely diced tomato
• 1/2 cup grated zucchini
• 1/2 cup grated carrot
• 1/4 cup minced onion

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 °F.

In a large bowl mix together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a second bowl mix together the egg, milk, butter and oil. Stir this into the dry ingredients just until mixed. Add the tomatoes, zucchini, carrot and onion and fold in until veggies are dispersed throughout the batter. Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full with batter.

Bake muffins 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Yield: 12 muffins

Arepas are a popular breakfast dish in Venezuela and Colombia. They are corn cakes made of precooked cornmeal (I like the white variety). I was introduced to arepas by a friend in college. Her father was from Colombia and her mother would frequently make arepas (and wonderful empanadas). We would eat them with carne mechada (shredded beef) and black beans for dinner. Ed grew up eating arepas with cheese, carne and a side of black beans for breakfast – aka Pabellón Criollo, the traditional Venezuelan breakfast. So obviously they are very versatile and good at any time of the day. Ed says that in Venezuelan people basically treat them as bread making all kinds of sandwiches with arepas – ham & cheese, black beans & onions, shredded pork, etc. So, I present to you our breakfast this morning, Arepas con queso. We used a fresh Latin cheese called Guayanés, however, any fresh white cheese (e.g. Farmer’s cheese) will work. I also like them with cheddar & feta but don’t tell Ed – it is heresy!

Ingredients

• 2 cups masa de arepa (masarepa)
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• fresh white cheese

Directions

Place the masa in a bowl and mix in the salt. Add the water and stir with your hands until the water is absorbed. Let sit for 5-10 minutes then knead for a few minutes until the dough is smooth.

Shape into 2″ to 5″ patties (just depends on how big you’d like your arepas) that are about 1/2-inch thick. Cook in a cast iron skillet on medium-low heat until outsides are crisp and the inside is cooked. This will take 10+ minutes.

Serve while hot. Cut each arepa in half and fill with white cheese (or carne, or black beans, or ham, etc.).

Yield: 4 servings

Notes

You can also crumble the cheese into the dough (about 1/2 cup) so it melts while you cook the arepas. These are great filled with beef or beans.

These are my favorite waffles, period. They also happen to be vegan! You might have to cook them longer than other waffles you are used to.. When done they are crisp on the outside and chewy and moist on the inside.

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar (brown sugar preferred)
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 Tablespoons soy yogurt
• 2 cups soymilk
• 15 oz pureed pumpkin, fresh or canned
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

Sift together dry ingredients. In a different bowl, whisk wet ingredients until well mixed. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and combine with a few strokes until there are not many dry pockets. Pour enough batter into waffle maker to make a nice size waffle and follow your manufacturer’s instructions.

Yield: 6 servings

These are the perfect before dinner snack – especially with a glass of wine. I ate these with some unfiltered apple juice (because wine & painkillers don’t mix). The apple juice was a great counterpoint to these salty, cheesy toasts and needed as these were very rich. If you’re planning on serving these with wine I’d recommend topping each toast with a few thin slices of apple to add the fruity flavor they need.

Ingredients

• 1/2 Tablespoon butter, softened
• 2 Tablespoons blue cheese
• 4 pecans, chopped fine
• 2 slices bread

Directions

Preheat the broiler. Mix together the softened butter, blue cheese and chopped pecans. Spread half of mixture on each slice of bread. Toast under broiler until bubbly and warm.

Servings: 1